It has been known for some time that the application of a hot medium (usually air) to the nose of a patient suffering from rhinitis results in a sensible relief thereof, due both to the opening of the respiratory tracks and the sterilization thereof. However, in order to obtain a useful action of the hot medium and to avoid harmful effects or an uncomfortable feeling during treatment, the hot medium employed must fulfill certain requirements. Throughout this specification reference will be made to air as the hot medium, for the sake of simplicity, it being understood that any other suitable gaseous medium may be employed instead of air, with the corresponding operational changes.
As stated, the hot air must fulfill certain conditions. The temperature of the air, for instance, should not exceed 47° C. in order to avoid damage to the mucous membrane of the patient's nose. Further, the humidity of the air must be as high as possible in order to avoid discomfort and a feeling of dryness in the patient. Maintaining these conditions usually required using relatively costly control mechanisms. In addition, many prior devices required using distilled water, which is more expensive than non-distilled water.
The following patents and patent applications, all being incorporated herein by reference, describe various devices and methods for providing a mixture of air and vapor: U.S. Pat. No. 4,805,614 of Lerner, U.S. patent application publication 2004231668 of Kates, U.S. Pat. No. 5,483,953 of Cooper, Japanese patent application JP2000051355, Japanese patent application JP1995000036455 of Terada et al., Japanese patent application JP1991000220036 of Watari et al., FR2595251 of Lwoff et al., and PCT patent application publication serial number WO03059425 of Jiang et al.
There is a growing need to provide inexpensive and efficient devices and method for providing a controlled mixture of gas and vapor to a patient.